PAWV
  • Give to PAWV
    • Give Online
    • Ways to Give to PAWV
    • Volunteer
  • Resources
    • Funding Resources >
      • Saving Historical Places Grant
    • Consultants and Contractors
    • Preservation Techniques >
      • Historic Building Assessment
      • How to Recycle Asbestos
      • Mothballing Property
      • Window Rehabilitation
    • Educational Resources >
      • Frances Benjamin Johnston >
        • Essay - Frances Benjamin Johnston: A West Virginia Icon
        • Selected Photos
        • Behind the Lens Activity
      • Webinar Archive
  • Programs
    • Advocacy
    • Annual Awards >
      • 2020 Historic Preservation Awards
    • Endangered Properties List >
      • Endangered Property Nominations
      • Saved Sites
      • Archived Sites
    • West Virginia Historic Preservation Conference
    • Historic Preservation Loan Fund
    • Webinars
    • West Virginia Historic Theatre Trail >
      • Movie Theatres of West Virginia
    • WV New Deal Trail
  • AmeriCorps
    • About Preserve WV
    • Preserve WV Stories
    • Preserve WV Members
    • Join AmeriCorps >
      • Open AmeriCorps Opportunities
      • Apply for AmeriCorps
    • Sponsor a Member
    • Preserve WV Alumni
  • About Us
    • Contact PAWV
    • Our Team
    • Our Story
    • News and Notes

THE “ACCIDENTAL” ADVOCATE – SAVING TOP O ROCK

5/24/2014

 
We are pleased to have a guest blogger, Jennifer Peters, write this blog about her efforts to save Top O Rock in Charleston.

I never planned on becoming an advocate.  But a last-minute-after-dinner trip for ice cream with my family changed all that.  So here I am, the “Accidental”Advocate.

​The spring foliage made it difficult to see the glass house known as Top-O-Rock as we drove by so a split decision brought us up the hill to take a quick peek.  And THIS is what we found.  (Insert gasp of horror here).

Picture
To describe how it felt to witness this destruction in person is impossible.  It was AWFUL.  I cried.  Ninety-one pictures later and I was ready to show the city of Charleston the wretched state of this “beloved”and “iconic”structure.

Constructed in 1968 by local architect and engineer Henry Elden, Top-O-Rock is a magnificent 10,000 square foot structure of steel and glass that functioned as both working and living environment under the same roof.  An unconventional combination of  industrial and organic principles, it was designed to incorporate the natural beauty of the surrounding landscape.  Elden referred to it as “A glass jeweled box set in a hillside without disturbing the beauty of the natural terrain”.  This terrain being a steep twenty-seven foot sandstone cliff with panoramic vies of the city.  It consisted of 8500 square feet of solar plated tinted glass that was held together by an intricate framework of 90 tons of steel and 880,000 pounds of concrete that engaged the heavily wooded landscape that surrounded it.  The structure itself was adapted into its’natural surroundings.  Charleston residents had never seen anything like Top-O-Rock.   It was considered Elden’s architectural masterpiece.  And he joyfully shared this with the community, opening the doors to anyone that wanted to see its grandeur in person.   He hosted a variety of galas, parties  and other functions.  It became known as one of Charleston’s most iconic houses and remained that way until Mr. Elden’s death in 2009.  It remained vacant until it was purchased in 2011.

An advocate is defined as a person who publicly supports or recommends a particular cause or policy and offers support to the interest of another.  In a nutshell, an advocate becomes the voice for an entity that is unable to speak for itself.

To say that I was upset was an understatement.  I was sad.  And I was VERY angry.  The house had been abandoned and neglected and left alone to defend itself against the elements of nature as well as vandals and thieves.  How could this have happened?  How did the condition get the this point?  Who was responsible?  And what could be done?  I wanted answers.  AND I wanted everyone in Charleston to see what collective ignorance had done to a once magnificent place.

Naturally, sharing the pictures on Facebook was the quickest way to reach a large audience.  Combined with numerous emails to the local media, word spread quickly that Top-O-Rock was in dire need of help.   I posted on Sunday evening.  The response was overwhelming.  By Monday morning,  requests to the City of Charleston were made and the necessary steps to determine what was needed to secure the structure began.  A violation order was issued to the owners with 21 days to meet the requirements.  A collective sigh of relief was felt in the community.  Until a local contracting firm said it had been approached to possibly demolish the house.  That single word: DEMOLISH was completely unacceptable to me.  I knew at that moment, I was going to do anything and everything to save Top-O-Rock.

On Tuesday morning, I started a Facebook group and page called “Save Top-O-Rock”and shared it with my friends.  Within 30 minutes I had 150 members.  By the end of the day, I had 500 members.  It was amazing.  Membership requests along with offers of assistance, advice, financial donations, resources to utilize and volunteers was OVERWHELMING.  I was relieved that there were so many other people out there willing to lend a voice and become an advocate.  Today, we are 1400 members strong.  TOGETHER we continue to fight for our beloved Top-O-Rock.  It has been an emotional and tough few weeks but to date, the owners have secured the house and are working with the community to save it.  For now, demolition is off the table.  And we ARE continuing to make, albeit slow, progress.
​
So the next time you find yourself driving down MacCorkle Avenue, remember to take a look up at the glass jeweled box on the hillside peeking out the trees, where it sits patiently waiting for another chance to speak for ITSELF.

Comments are closed.

    News and Notes

    RSS Feed

    Categories

    All
    About
    Advocacy
    Awards
    Conferences
    Endangered Properties
    Excuse For An Excursion
    Federal Historic Tax Credit
    Heritage Areas
    Heritage Tourism
    Historic Architecture
    Historic Preservation Funding
    Historic Preservation Programs
    Miscellaneous
    Newsletter
    Preservation Legislation
    Preserve WV AmeriCorps
    State Historic Tax Credit
    Training

    Archives

    May 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    July 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012


    Subscribe to our mailing list to receive e-news updates on historic preservation news and events in West Virginia.
    Subscribe

Get Involved

  • Give Online
  • ​Volunteer
  • Join AmeriCorps 
  • ​Subscribe 
  • Kroger Community Rewards
  • Shop with Amazon Smile
  • Contact Us

Programs

  • Our Latest E-News
  • Saving Historical Places Grant
  • Preserve WV AmeriCorps
  • Advocacy
  • ​Preservation Awards
  • Endangered Properties List
  • Conferences
  • Historic Preservation Loan Fund
  • WV Historic Theatre Trail
  • WV Historic New Deal Trail


Contact Us

Preservation Alliance of West Virginia
​421 Davis Avenue, #4  |  Elkins, WV 26241
​Email: info@pawv.org
Phone: 304-345-6005
Donate with Crypto

PAWV Logo
Picture
Picture
© COPYRIGHT 2020 - PRESERVATION ALLIANCE OF WEST VIRGINIA. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
  • Give to PAWV
    • Give Online
    • Ways to Give to PAWV
    • Volunteer
  • Resources
    • Funding Resources >
      • Saving Historical Places Grant
    • Consultants and Contractors
    • Preservation Techniques >
      • Historic Building Assessment
      • How to Recycle Asbestos
      • Mothballing Property
      • Window Rehabilitation
    • Educational Resources >
      • Frances Benjamin Johnston >
        • Essay - Frances Benjamin Johnston: A West Virginia Icon
        • Selected Photos
        • Behind the Lens Activity
      • Webinar Archive
  • Programs
    • Advocacy
    • Annual Awards >
      • 2020 Historic Preservation Awards
    • Endangered Properties List >
      • Endangered Property Nominations
      • Saved Sites
      • Archived Sites
    • West Virginia Historic Preservation Conference
    • Historic Preservation Loan Fund
    • Webinars
    • West Virginia Historic Theatre Trail >
      • Movie Theatres of West Virginia
    • WV New Deal Trail
  • AmeriCorps
    • About Preserve WV
    • Preserve WV Stories
    • Preserve WV Members
    • Join AmeriCorps >
      • Open AmeriCorps Opportunities
      • Apply for AmeriCorps
    • Sponsor a Member
    • Preserve WV Alumni
  • About Us
    • Contact PAWV
    • Our Team
    • Our Story
    • News and Notes